In the vain hope for rationality, reason and logic in politics. In the dream that mere citizens can see far better than the elected or appointed.

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Immigration Reform - Illegal Aliens and Jobs for Americans

The thing I cannot seem to get over is the fact that the United States has immigration laws. Let me restate that. I cannot seem to get over the fact that the United States still has immigration laws. There, that's much better. After all, if you aren't going to enforce them why have them on the books. I am not talking about the impossible, I am talking about the simple and easy. It is so simple and easy that there seems to be a few immigration officials that __actually care enough__ to go out and raid a few locations. See:

Why categorize these paperless border crossers as having committed something illegal at all when you do nothing about it? If someone robbed a bank, that would be an illegal act. You'd arrest them and do soemthing about it. You don't give them additional rights and privileges. A convict has lost their right to vote unless a judge restores it. Put these illegals into jail - even for a day and take away their right to vote even if they did become legal later.

Another problem I have. We are supposed to be in a free market economy - meaning that government generally does not interfere in the market. Note qualification - generally. The claim that Americans don't want to do certain jobs (even if true) just means that the wages are not high enough to get Americans to take the jobs. Read that last sentence again.

Let the natural market forces decide what levels these wages should be and how many Americans will be willing to do them. Don't let an illegal source of labor be the factor that artificially forces the wages down. Another way to look at is is this:

These jobs will pay more if there are no illegals to fill them. The resulting higher wages will attract more Americans to take them. The wages will continue to go up until the equilibrium point between the supply (American workers) and demand (the employers) is established. It might still be low but it will be higher than with illegal immigrants.

The main ones being hurt by not having illegal aliens around are the employers - but then Walmart should be able to afford to deal with contractors that hire legally don't they? After all, they made $10 billion (not million) net income for the year ending Jan 2005.

After the Kathy-Lee Gifford (testimony) + WalMart debacle of child and underpaid labor in Central and South America was exposed on the media, WalMart REQUIRED their suppliers to no longer underpay or use child labor if my memory serves. Why not REQUIRE that your contractors no longer use illegal workers WalMart?